HYDERABAD:
The State Government has claimed that suicides by farmers have fallen steeply following introduction of economic measures and recommendations by the Jayati Ghosh Commission, which went into them.

Agriculture Minister N. Raghuveera Reddy told the Assembly during question hour on Saturday that the first 30 weeks of the Congress rule was marked by suicide of 915 farmers. The subsequent 33 weeks had seen only 116 deaths -- an eight-fold difference.

Mr. Reddy attributed the steep decline to self-employment opportunities and stepped up loan facilities provided to them by the Government. The crop loan was Rs. 8,361 crores for the kharif season.

He said that of the 176 recommendations of the Ghosh Commission, the Government had implemented 69 and referred 33 to the Centre for a final decision which had to be taken in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India, NABARD and State-level Bankers' Committee.